Abortion - What is meant by the word abortion?

GCSE Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)

Foyzur Rahman 11.2 786 R.E Coursework Abortion

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GCSE R.E COURSEWORK – ABORTION

Ai) What is meant by the word abortion?

The word abortion literally means “any death of a baby in the womb and it’s expulsion from the mothers body.” In simple terms the ending of a pregnancy. Abortion comes from the Latin word ‘aboriri’ meaning ‘to fail to be born’ There are 2 types of abortion a natural abortion (miscarriage) and a procured abortion. Natural abortion (miscarriage) means that the abortion happens in of own accord. This can be very upsetting for couples who want the baby. Many miscarriages happen very early in the pregnancy and the woman would not have been aware of it. When people normally talk about abortion they are talking about a procured abortion. This is when the foetus (or growing child) is deliberately killed and taken out of the mothers womb.(because of how unpleasant it is many talk about it as a “termination”).

Aii) What biblical and church teachings might be used in a discussion about

abortion?

Unfortunately for Christians there are no direct teachings in the bible telling them what exactly to do in an abortion situation. Conveniently they can refer to many verses on the sanctity of life which would act as a framework for their decision. Sanctity of life teaches Christians that life is very special as it is a gift from God, what could be better than a gift from God.

There are many strong points from the bible that a Christian can use in a discussion for + against abortion. I shall now quote various biblical teachings and interpret them. One of the most obvious verses which are used on the issue of abortion is this verse:

Exodus 20 verse 13 ‘Do not commit murder’

This is easily recognised as a verse which against abortion. When a person has an abortion they are killing the baby on purpose so it will be seen as murder. But many will try and argue the issue that the foetus is not being murdered as it is not the real thing (not a proper fully grown human baby)

A good verse Christians may use is Exodus 4 verses 11 ‘who gives man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or dumb? Who gives him sight or makes him blind’ it is I, the Lord

Here it is saying that it doesn’t matter If one is handicapped in anyway God has made them like this, it was Gods will that they are how they are, so by going against it you are not accepting what God has made. The law right now goes against this verse as it allows abortions if the foetus is seriously handicapped. God

In Psalm 127 verse 3 it tells us that ‘Children are a real gift from the lord; they are a real blessing.’

Many Christians will say that by having an abortion one is ...

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In Psalm 127 verse 3 it tells us that ‘Children are a real gift from the lord; they are a real blessing.’

Many Christians will say that by having an abortion one is rejecting a gift from God, what can be better than I gift from the one who has created the whole universe and runs it the lord. Some may say a handicapped human being will not be a very good gift as it will cause them so much hassle and problems in their lives. I think the mother should consider how badly handicapped the foetus could be if it is very bad then abortion is probably the most appropriate option

Psalm 99 verse 3 of the Old Testament ‘know that he, the lord, is God. He made us, we belong to him.’

One can use this to say that women do not have any right to abort as the foetus is not theirs to do what they want with, as it belongs to God. So the person will also be destroying what belongs to God if she aborts.

Many Christians will use the teachings of their own Christian church in a discussion on abortion. There many different types of Christian churches, there are 3 main types which are: Roman Catholic Church- overall they have the strictest view on abortion. The Church of England- they have a more modest fairer view on abortion and allow abortion more easily than the Catholic Church. The Methodist church- probably has the most lenient rules on abortion of the 3.

B Explain how Christians might put their beliefs about abortion into action, 35% = 21marks

There are many theories, teachings, concepts that Christians can use and put them into action. The most likely influences will probably come from their church and their biblical teaching (sanctity of life). These teachings are likely to have a strong influence on their decision about abortion.

A popular teaching among Christians (which many use) is the ‘Lesser of Two Evils’. This is when all the possible decisions/ways are bad/wrong/evil in one way or another. So the woman will try and take the decision which is the least evil of the decisions. For instance if a woman was raped and she became pregnant from it. The woman would be faced by two evil decisions which are: to go on with the unwanted pregnancy and be reminded all her life of the rape which will be very distressing. The other being having an abortion which is killing an innocent foetus which has done nothing wrong to have it’s life just taken away.

Another concept is the ‘Principle of Double Effect’ – first put forward by Thomas Aquinas in the 14th Century. The principle is saying that the action involved has a double effect and the intention of the action is what is all important. The theory states that there must not be evil intended in the action and the action must be good. and the evil effect must be directly related to the good effect.. A good example of double effect is a situation where a pregnant woman is diagnosed as having cancer of the uterus. The cancer will kill both the mother and foetus if no action is taken so the mother must resort to having the operation which may save her, but having the operation will kill the foetus. So she is not killing the foetus on purpose (not being evil) and trying to save herself (good intention).

Mother Teresa is very well known for her beliefs and the way she put them into action. She cared for all unwanted babies, she picked them up on doorsteps bins rubbish dumps and gave them a home. She told people if they don’t want their baby she would look after them. A famous quote of hers is ‘if you do make a mistake, don’t destroy the life because also to that child God says: I have called you by my name; I have carved you in the palm of my hand.’

C ‘Abortion is never justified’. Do you agree? 15 marks

I shall now give my views and what I believe a Christians view on the different circumstances in which abortion could be justified or unjustified.

Reasons I believe that make abortion justified are: (As long as it is done before 120 days after conception)

Rape and incest.

I believe that if a woman has been raped then she should be aloud to have an abortion. There are many reasons why I believe the abortion is justified. The woman did not want to have sex (or have a baby) in the first place with the man. Having the baby will always remind her of the horrible incident that occurred.. I also believe it is permissible for a woman to have an abortion because of incest. Incest is quite a sad thing that happens.

I think that in both cases most Christians (all types) would agree with my beliefs. The Church of England and Methodists both allow abortion for rape, I quite strongly believe they would allow abortion for incest. These types of cases are very unfortunate and sad so most Christians are likely to think that abortion is ok for these reasons. However Roman Catholics do not allow abortion for such a reason they would say the God made the baby it was his will for this pregnancy to occur.

Proven abnormalities, e.g. Anencephaly (no brain), Downs Syndrome

I believe that in cases where there are proven abnormalities like the above mentioned, abortion should be warranted. The baby is also likely to have a shortened life. So I believe in this case it is the lesser of two evils as the most loving choice to take for the baby’s sake.

Many Christians would allow abortion on a case like this. The Church of England and the Methodist Church are very likely to allow abortion in this case. They will also see it as the lesser of two evils and the most loving option. I don’t think the Catholic’s would allow abortion in such a case. They are likely to say that the baby was made like this by god; it was his decision for the foetus to be having abnormalities.

Reasons I believe do not make abortion justified are:-

Speculated abnormalities of foetus

Here the abnormalities are only speculated but one is not yet 100% sure if the foetus has any disabilities. I do not think one should be killing a foetus for no actual reason; if they are not sure then why take the risk of killing it, as it could be perfectly normal?

I think the majority of Christians would agree that, such a point does not justify abortion. All Christians believe it is wrong to kill an innocent being. Christians are likely to agree that one must be 100% sure of any abnormalities before having the abortion otherwise they are just killing a normal foetus for no actual reason.

spacing of children

I don’t think that having a family that already has enough children (in the parents’ view) allows the woman to have an abortion. If they knew that that they did not want/need any children then why not use the contraceptives available to them to stop having unwanted children?

Most Christians are likely to agree that in such a case abortion is not permissible. All Christians believe that the foetus should be given every chance to live, and letting weak arguments like this get through the justified barrier is not giving the foetus a good chance to live. I am not sure what the Methodists will think about this situation.

Conclusion

‘Abortion is never justified’. Do you agree? This is a very difficult question as one must think seriously and thoroughly about it. At times one may think that abortion is justified e.g. like when a young adolescent child is raped and ends up pregnant, but on the other side one will say it is wrong to kill the innocent foetus who has done no wrong. On the whole, I do not agree with the quote. This is because I do believe there are times when abortion should be permitted. In cases where the mother’s life is endangered, where the foetus will be born with severe abnormalities, rape incest etc I do believe abortion is justified these are serious, unfortunate cases where the mother is not at fault.

I believe the Methodists and the Church of England would not agree that ‘Abortion is never justified’. Both churches allow abortion in many different situations like rape, incest mother having uterus cancer etc. This shows that they do believe in many cases abortion is justified. The Roman Catholics are likely to agree that ‘Abortion is never justified’. This is because it is extremely rare to see a Roman Catholic Church allow abortion, whatever the case. Even though they may allow abortion when the mother has uterus cancer you are highly unlikely to see them allow any other case. So overall a good amount of Christians will agree and a many will not agree with this question.